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Koha’s lunch – leftover steak pieces and peas (she doesn’t mind them cold but can always ask at creche for them to be heated up if she wants them hot), a hard-boiled egg, a mandarin, and a banana. Lately Koha has been enjoying peeling things like mandarins and eggs, and she even peels my eggs for me when we eat them together. That’s why the egg and mandarin are not peeled for her, perhaps with another child you might peel those for them to make it easier for them to nibble during the day.

I recently was emailed by live below the line, who annually run a week long event which challenges participants to live on $2.25 a day for food to raise money for charities which are fighting to end poverty in this lifetime . The event is well worth participating in, because even if you don’t raise any money in support of those charities you do go through a mind-opening process of re-evaluation of the world. They are currently compiling recipes from former participants on this challenge and I just wanted to let the world know about it. If you have any recipes you can submit them on their facebook page.

Another good, free, resource for families who are worried about how they will provide for their families this season is this website: http://breakfasteaters.org.nz/ – there you’ll find a lot of recipes for breakfasts and brunches, all of which are low cost.

I made this for Koha the other day. She was delighted. I simply placed the cookie cutter on the frying pan and cracked the egg and poured it in. I used a knife to gently remove the cookie cutter before serving.

We’ve only recently started eating pearl barley as a low GI carb with loads of fiber. It’s cheap, it’s nutritious, and you can use it in loads of different meals. I like it because it is quite chewy and has more of its own flavour than rice does. It seems to work quite well as a rice substitute in stir-fries and as a side, for days when rice feels too boring. I like to cook it in vegetable stock, which I find gives the barley a really yummy flavour.

Pearl barley is also very cheap – another option for anyone doing the Live Below the Line challenge, or anyone who wants to save money.

pearl barley cooking in stock

To find pearl barley in the supermarket, look near the soups. That’s where I found my bag of barley, after first hunting around the supermarket’s bulk food section and rice section and feeling disappointed when I couldn’t find any.

I love barbecued vegetables. All you do, is chop ’em up & toss ’em on a hot plate or pan. Capsicums are particularly nice this way as it brings out their sweetness. I would serve this as a side dish with a main meal, or as a snack by itself.

My husband and I did this challenge last year. It was hard, but mind opening. If you’re interested, check out the video above. We will probably do this again this year (Koha will not participate as this is not safe for children). Either way, we will put up some recipes soon that would work with this challenge for those that are following it.

We had this as a treat today: Greek yoghurt, with frozen blueberries and sliced bananas. It’s simple and delicious. I like adding frozen berries because the berries make the yoghurt cold and thick, which makes me think of ice cream. I like how Greek yoghurt is slightly sour, but if you aren’t a big fan you can counter-act the sourness with some honey, maple syrup, or sprinkled stevia. Mmm… Delicious…

To further support your mind, it is also important you ensure you eat enough food. The brain burns through calories quite quickly, especially when tasked with difficult problems. You need to eat regularly throughout the day to ensure your brain functions at a high level all day.

It is also important you sleep, especially when you are learning new things. When you learn something new you are more likely to remember it if (1) it interests you, (2) you repeat it later on in the day, for example by using a new word in a sentence or by explaining the concept to someone else, and (3) you sleep and allow your mind to convert it into a stronger memory while you sleep.

Yesterday we had omelettes for lunch. Omelettes are super easy and super cheap. Eggs are a good source of fats and protein and scientists claim eggs are one of the best super foods, and we should be eating at least one a day. This is an easy method for incorporating that egg.

Our simple method for making omelettes is to heat a frying pan to medium heat, add some canola oil to the pan, beat the eggs, and then pour the eggs onto the pan. When the omelette cooks, we fold it in half, then flip it once, and then remove it from the heat and serve it up. This simple technique works almost every time, and is so easy. All you need are eggs.

To build your perfect signature dish:

– Decrease fat by adding egg whites, rather than whole eggs. The yolk is the most nutritious part of the egg, but if you are on a diet you might not want so many calories and egg white omelettes still taste nice (especially with onion or vegetables inside the omelette) but have less fat and less calories. Alternatively, you might have one whole egg and 4 egg whites to increase the total protein of your omelette without adding many calories.

– Add flavour before you cook it by throwing in some flavour with the beaten eggs. Suggestions include: onion, salsa, spice mixes, tabasco sauce, salt or pepper.

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Our Cooking Show & Blog

The stars of this cooking show are....

* Natalie! The Mum! She knows a little bit about eating healthily and is always looking for new recipes to try at home.

* Koha! The daughter! She is outgoing and looooves to cook. Koha has been interested in cooking ever since she was a baby. Now she is 4 and a bit of a wee expert.

This Blog:

Here you will find a whole heap of recipes, videos of our cooking show, and tonnes of ideas on how to cook at home, how to include children in cooking, how to foster an interest in cooking, how to cook healthily, and how to make delicious food while on a budget.